FEATURE: Getting To Know…Nick Harper

We find out a little more about the singer songwriter

By NARC.
on Friday, March 9th, 2018

Singer-songwriter Nick Harper has quite the musical pedigree. The son of the legendary UK singer-songwriter Roy Harper grew up surrounded by the likes of Keith Moon, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and Dave Gilmour and it is therefore not surprising that Nick became a musician himself.

He has played guitar from the age of 10 and made his recording debut on his father’s 1985 album Whatever Happened to Jugula? Nick’s talent and energy understandably garnered attention from Roy’s fans and it was almost inevitable that he would begin touring and recording in his own right, and he takes in Durham’s Empty Shop on Sunday 18th March. Before all that though, we found out just a little more about him.

What’s the first record you ever bought?
The first single I ever bought was Single Bed by Foxx. I fell for Noosha! She started a few things up.
The first album I bought was a Frank Zappa compilation. I think it was just called The Mothers of Invention. Green cover. I took it in to school to play it in music appreciation or something. It was promptly nicked! Perhaps by my repressed music teacher. Whatever, Frank started me on a slightly different journey to Noosha. I gave up studying music at school.

What’s your guilty pleasure musically?
I don’t think you should feel guilty about listening to music if it gives you pleasure. Unless it’s exhorting you to go forth and do harm to others. You should probably turn just that stuff off. Where did you get it anyway? Second-hand from a repressed ex-music teacher?
I heard Antmusic on a juke box recently and thought it sounded brilliant and was slightly embarrassed to find myself singing along a bit too loudly in the pub – does that count?

Favourite film of all time?
A Day At The Races or Pan’s Labyrinth

Your guilty pleasure film?
Django Unchained. Great film, but I’ve watched it about 4 times in the last year by mistake, probably after getting home after being out…

If you could recommend one TV series to binge watch, what would it be?
Family Guy

Your favourite book?
The Story Of My Heart by Richard Jeffries

Who or what makes you laugh the most?
Stewart Lee

Who or what makes you sad?
Stewart Lee

If you had super power, what would it be?
I think everyone has at least one.
OK then, time travel? Don’t think anyone’s done that in the future yet?

And finally, you get to play a board game with any three famous people from history, who do you choose and what’s the board game?
With Donald Trump Snr., Kim Jong Il and Vlad Putin Snr. and I’d like to play Waddington’s ‘Sterilisation Game’. (I would only play as the surgeon though).